Mumbai, Sept. 3 -- At a time when the headline indices look range-bound, R. Sivakumar, chief investment officer of Axis Mutual Fund, sees pockets of opportunities across large-, mid- and small-caps. He believes growth is showing signs of revival. He points to manufacturing and the revival of the private capex cycle as a theme that can play out over the next few years. Edited excerpts:

Let me start with caution. IT rallies reflexively whenever global semiconductors sell off, on the same AI/anti-AI trade, but that isn't a reason to own it, because quarter-on-quarter growth momentum still hasn't returned. The AI-deployment piece is growing fast, but it's a small slice of revenue; the bulk is legacy software development, which is deflating. ...